After downloading the images from my CF card, I open the folder in Bridge. I rename the images to something more usable (and I'll be doing this in ImageIngester now) and then add my MetaData (again, I'll be doing this in II). I do a quick browse through and delete any obvious mistakes. I then burn a CD/DVD with these 'originals' and file it under the client's name. I only burn one client per media. If anything goes wrong with a CD, I only want to loose one client not many. If it takes more than one CD/DVD, so be it - just file them together - no biggy.

Next step is to go though the images, pose by pose (or situation by situation, or whatever you want to call it) and pick out the best image (I don't show proofs - I pick the photos and design the album from my selection). The selected images go into a 'Selected' folder. I batch these out with Image Processor in Bridge to an 'Album Planner' folder, subfolder 'Planner Images'. I don't do any adjustments, cropping or anything at this time. Then I design the album layout using the jpgs (much faster in my layout program (PhotoJunction).

Once the album is designed and I know what size each image is going to be, whether it's colour or B&W, or something in between, I rename the Selected Folder images (these are the RAW ones) in the order of appearance in the album - 1 through whatever. This I pretty much have to do manually but it doesn't take much time.

Then I start with the first RAW image, make adjustments in ACR, load into CS2 and do any retouching, burning/dodging, all the PS stuff and, if its an image that I feel will be a candidate for a reorder - I save it as a .psd in a 'Processed' folder so that I can recall it later, already retouched, etc, to be sized for any orders. I save it as a psd in case I have any adjustment layers, such as soft focus fx so that I can use it or not at a later date. If it's just a candid or something I'm pretty sure won't be reordered, I'll just move on to the next step - size the photo for what I need in the album and save it as a jpg, 12 quality, in the 'To Lab' folder. These 'candid' shots are usually not retouched or manipulated much anyway.

After the album is delivered, I delete the 'Album Planner' folder - I don't need those jpgs or other files anymore. So I'm left with the Original's folder, the Selects folder, the Processed and To Lab (the album prints) folder. This gets burned to (usually) a DVD, and filed under the client's name.

When I deliver the album to the client, I create a contact sheet of all their images (batched from the To Lab folder) which is in the same order as the photos appear in the album (and numbered that way) to make reordering as easy as possible. If they lose the contact sheet, they can simply count from the first image in the album and tell me what number they want.